Her Secret
by CMlvr93
Summary: J.J. suddenly leaves and in order to find her the team has to dig up her biggest secrets. JJ/Morgan
1. Chapter 1

**This is the very first fanfic I have ever written, so if it completely sucks don't be surprised. This takes place between when Gideon left and Rossi joined the team.**

**I don't own Criminal Minds although it would be nice if I did.**

Her Secret

A CM fanfic

Chapter 1

It was a warm and sunny Monday morning at Quantico and Derek Morgan's mood seemed to match the atmosphere of the day, until he noticed that J.J., the profiling team's liaison wasn't at work yet. He and J.J. had been secretly dating for almost three months and he knew that she would never be almost two hours late without telling him. He tried to convince himself that maybe she just overslept or forgot to set her alarm the night before, but the feeling that something was wrong kept coming back to him. Images of his girlfriend being kidnapped or tortured kept replaying through his mind as he quickly rose from his chair and nearly sprinted the short distance to his boss's office praying that they wouldn't have another incident like Reid's or Elle's which had taken place only a few short years before.

When Morgan reached the closed door of Hotch's office he knocked and as soon as he heard "Come in." he quickly opened the door, stepped inside and closed it behind him.

"Hotch, J.J.'s not here yet." he stated, getting straight to the point.

"Have you talked to Garcia? J.J. might have talked to her, told her she was going to be late or was sick and wasn't going to be here today". Hotch replied, only slightly worried at the absence of their liaison, confident that Garcia, The Oracle of All Things Knowable and Unknowable, would be able to help Morgan find J.J.

"No, but she's almost two hours late! If she was going to be this late or was sick I'm sure she would have told me. And shouldn't she tell _**you**_, not Garcia if she's not going to be here?"

It was then that Hotch first noticed the look in his friend's eyes. He could tell that Morgan was worried, but there was something more. Something that made Hotch wonder if there really was something going on between two of his teammates. Hotch was sure that what he was seeing was nothing short of genuine fear. The type of fear that Hotch himself might feel if something were to happen to Jack or Hayley. The kind of fear that you feel when you know that someone you love could be in great danger.

"Hotch." Morgan said, bringing his superior back from his thoughts.

"What? Sorry, what did you say?"

"I said maybe I should go by her house and make sure she's alright." Morgan said, getting slightly aggravated at his boss for not paying attention and staring off into space when J.J.'s life could be in danger.

"I guess if she's this late it probably would be a good idea to have someone go check on her." Hotch was about to suggest that Morgan take Reid or Emily with him when he noticed that he was already out the door and halfway to the elevator.

"I hope she's ok." Hotch said to himself as he dialed her cell phone number, only to get her voicemail, before going back to his paperwork.

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When Morgan arrived at J.J.'s small home everything seemed normal. The brightness of the sun and the colorful flowers in her front yard made him feel almost joyful, but when he remembered his mission, his reason for being there, the sudden joyfulness that he had felt for only a second disappeared as quickly as it had come. The dread he was beginning to feel only intensified as he look around. The morning's rolled up newspaper still sitting on her front porch, the fact that no lights were on in the house and what he saw when he looked in a window made his panic level rise even more. The window he chose to look in had just happened to be the window that lead to her bedroom. All the drawers in her dresser were open, the bed wasn't made, the closet door was open and there wasn't a single hanger in the closet with an article of clothing on it.

Derek Morgan didn't want to believe it, but he could feel deep inside him that J.J. was gone. He didn't know why or how, he just knew that it looked as though she had left in a hurry. He hoped that someone hadn't forced her to leave, but he also prayed that she hadn't left on her own because he had no idea what could make her want to leave without telling him.

To find an answer to his questions and also to vent some of his anger at the thought of the one person he loved suddenly leaving without telling him Morgan kicked down the front door. As he stepped into the living room he noticed an envelope sitting on the kitchen table. He looked around as he moved closer to it, scared at what kind of truth the contents of it might hold.

As Morgan slowly moved through the living room, getting closer and closer to the envelope he began to notice items around the house that had disappeared since his last visit. Pictures of office parties were missing from the walls and several books had disappeared from the shelves they once sat on.

Finally he made his way through the living room and into the kitchen. Slowly lowering himself into a chair he reached his right hand out to grasp the white, crisp envelop that had Morgan written on it in J.J's unmistakable cursive handwriting.

He slid a single piece of paper from the envelope, unfolded it and began to read:

_Derek, _

_I guess by now you have probably figured out that I have left. I am truly sorry and I want you to know that if I could have done this another way or prevented it from happening I would have. I never really got the chance to tell you, but I hope you know that I love you and I have for a long time now. I can only hope and pray that someday I will be able to see you again and tell you why I had to leave. Please don't be mad and try not to forget me. I know I could never forget you, even if I wanted to. I will always love you and I will never stop thinking about you. Say goodbye to the rest of the team for me._

_Sorry,_

_Jen_

Tears came to his eyes as he finished reading the letter. It raised more questions than it answered and he could not understand why. All she said was that she had to go, but why? What could possibly have made her want to leave her job, her friends, her life and him, the man who loved her and whom she apparently loved back?

Morgan rose from his chair and taking her letter and envelope with him he got in his car and drove, still not comprehending that J.J. was gone and he might never see her again.

.


	2. Chapter 2

Her Secret

A CM fanfic

Chapter 2

In the BAU bullpen Reid was sitting at his desk, waiting for something to do. He knew that J.J. wasn't there yet and he had run out of paperwork an hour ago. Prentiss had gone to refill her coffee cup which with Hotch in his office left Spencer Reid all alone. Out of boredom Reid decided to do one of his magic tricks. He made one of his film canister rockets and as it flew up into the air he couldn't help but think of the last time he preformed this trick when he hit Emily in the head and got a rare smile from Hotch as one landed right in front of him. Watching his latest creation land and promptly be stepped on by Morgan pulled Reid from his memory

"Hey watch where you're going." Reid said slightly aggravated, yet happy to finally have someone to talk to.

"Read this Reid." Morgan replied as he shoved the envelope and its contents towards him.

"Ok, get up on the wrong side of the bed today?" Reid said jokingly as he started to read the letter.

Morgan watched as the young genius's eyes got bigger and bigger as he read more of the letter.

Emily Prentiss walked in as Reid's eyes began to bulge out of his head.

"What's wrong with him?" She asked as Reid finished reading the letter and looked at Morgan.

"Well, analyze it Reid! There has to be something in the handwriting or something! She wouldn't have just left!" Morgan practically yelled at Reid completely ignoring Emily.

"Who left? What's going on?" Emily said almost as loud as Morgan, causing Hotch to come out of his office to see what was going on.

"Morgan, Prentiss, and Reid, conference room, now." Hotch said sternly, wondering what Morgan could have found at J.J.'s that would have made him this upset.

The three profilers quickly complied to their superior's wishes and headed towards the conference room. As they walked the short distance Emily tried to find out what was going on.

"What happened?" She whispered to Morgan.

"J.J.'s gone." He simply replied with sadness and fear evident in his voice.

"What do you mean she's gone?" She asked not believing that J.J. could have just disappeared.

"She left." He said, his voice growing louder as he pushed the letter towards her. They had reached to conference room and once Emily took the letter from him, Morgan walked in and slammed his fist on the round table in the center of the room.

"Morgan, calm down!" Hotch said in the calmest voice he could, trying to keep his friend and colleague from making more of a scene, breaking something, or hurting himself or someone else.

Morgan sat down in a chair at the round table and put his head in his hands, trying not to let his friends see the tears that threatened to fall.

"Oh my god." Emily stated as she finished reading the letter.

"Will someone please tell me what's going on?!" Hotch tried desperately to get some information out of someone, but was met with nothing but silence until Emily slowly walked towards him and handed him the folded piece of paper she had been reading.

Hotch read the letter slowly and then read it again, not believing what his eyes were telling him. The looks sometimes shared between J.J. and Morgan had not gone unnoticed by the senior profiler, but the never thought it had gone as far as the letter implied. Two of his teammates, colleagues, and friends were in love and one of those two had just suddenly left without even a goodbye. He didn't know what he would do if Hayley ever left like that and he was certain that Morgan would rather be stuck in a room with someone like Jeffery Dhamer than be sitting in the conference room with his friends, knowing that he may never see J.J. again.

"I'm sorry Morgan. I had no idea." Hotch wasn't sure what to say, so he said the only thing he could think of, even though he knew those words wouldn't make his friend feel any better.

Morgan looked up at his teammates. There were tears in his eyes that he knew he couldn't hide, but it didn't matter to him anymore.

"Just tell me we can find her." Morgan said to Reid, Emily and Hotch, hoping that if they worked as a team and got Garcia to work some of her magic with her computers they could find J.J., bring her back, and help her through whatever she was obviously going through.

"I'll go get Garcia." Prentiss offered and she quickly walked out of the room and to the Tech Goddess's office to fill her in on everything that had gone on that morning.

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J.J. could hear dogs barking in the distance as she climbed out of the rental car she'd gotten at the airport. Once she was out of the car she walked towards her childhood home. There was a man standing at the front door. He looked to be in his sixties and the hair that was left on his head was gray.

"Jenny, is that you?" He asked incredulously as J.J. walked up the front steps of the house.

"Yeah dad, it's me."

"I haven't seen or heard from you in years! Where were you? What happened? How are you?" Her father said as quickly as he possibly could while pulling her into a hug and holding on as if she might suddenly disappear if he let go.

"I'm sorry dad." was all she could manage to say before her unshed tears finally began to fall.

Sam Mitchell then walked back into his house with his arm around his crying daughter, wondering what had happened to her since the last time he saw her, which had been several years before and what could have made her decide to come back.


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks to everyone who has reviewed!**

Her Secret

A CM fanfic

Chapter 3

"Find anything yet?" Hotch directed his question to Garcia, who was sitting in a chair opposite of him with her laptop. She was looking for anything in J.J.'s past that could explain her sudden departure.

"Nothing we didn't already know, Sir."

"Well, keep looking. I'm going to see if Reid or Prentiss have found anything and I'll call Morgan." Hotch said somewhat solemnly, knowing that if anyone had found anything they would have already told him.

Reid was going through all the case files J.J. had recently looked at, trying to find anything that could have triggered her sudden need to leave. He could hear his boss coming towards him.

"Nothing yet Hotch, but I've only gone through half of them."

"Ok, just let us know if you find anything."

"I will."

Emily Prentiss was looking through her friend's desk and office for any clues she may have left behind. When Hotch walked into the office he found her sitting at J.J.'s desk, trying to go through the mountains of paperwork that had been left there. She looked up at him after a few seconds.

"Hotch, the only thing I've found is that she and Morgan have been seeing each other for about three months and she was going to brief us on that case in Florida today."

"Well, that would mean that she hadn't been planning to leave."

"It supports what she said in the letter."

"Yeah, but what could cause her to just leave? Keep looking. I'm going to go call Morgan. Maybe he's found something at her house."

Hotch walked out of their liaison's office and into his own. He pulled out his cell phone and hit the speed dial for Morgan. After a few rings he finally answered.

"Nothing Hotch."

"Just keep me posted."

"I will." They both hung up.

Emily then knocked on his door and opened it without waiting for a response. She walked into his office with a surprisingly hopeful look on her face.

"I think I found something." she said.

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J.J. was sitting next to her father on the couch in the living room of the house she used to call home. The room and what little of the rest of the house she had seen looked exactly as she remembered it. The pictures of a six year old J.J. and her mother still hung in the same place they had been years ago.

Seeing the smiling faces of she and her mother only made J.J. cry harder as she remembered what little she could about happier times and the normal childhood she had lost only a few short months after the pictures had been taken. Finally, in between her sobs J.J. barely managed to get out the words she needed to say.

"I….I'm sorry Dad, but he…he's back."

"Who's back, Jenny?" Her father asked in a comforting and soothing voice, trying to encourage her to say what she needed to say, but petrified at the same time about what could have made his daughter so hysterical.

"The mad who killed mom." She said in a barely audible voice before she continued crying.

Her father just stared at her wide-eyed and speechless.


	4. Chapter 4

**This is the first time I've written anything, not just a fanfic and this chapter probably shows that. I don't know why, but I just don't like this chapter very much. I guess it just didn't turn out the way I wanted it to. So please review and tell me what you think about it.**

Her Secret

A CM fanfic

Chapter 4

The entire team, minus J.J. was seated around the round table in the conference room. None, if any had gotten much sleep the night before. After Prentiss's discovery of a letter sent to J.J. the week before they had all become even more worried and confused. Hotch was the first to speak.

"Let's go over what we have so far." He looked around the table and stopped at Emily. "Prentiss, you want to read the letter you found?"

She looked down at the paper in her hands. She had been lucky to find it due to the fact that J.J. had crumpled it up into an almost unreadable state and thrown it in the trash. Had she not been clumsy enough to accidentally knock over the small trash can and watch it tumble out from under several other papers they wouldn't have a clue whatsoever as to why J.J. left. After a short pause, she began to read.

"_Hello Jenny,_

_I hope you haven't forgotten me after all these years. As you can see, I have not forgotten you. I was so very happy when I was finally able to track you down. It's been many years since that unforgettable last time I saw your mother. I was thinking about how nice it would be to relive those memories and I think you would be the best person to help me do that. I hope to see you soon, Jenny and if you tell the police or any of your little FBI buddies about this letter something bad might just happen to that boyfriend of yours. Derek Morgan, right?_

_See you soon"_

She looked up at Morgan as she finished reading.

"Garcia, could you find anything about something happening to J.J.'s mother?" Hotch asked.

"No, I couldn't. In fact, all of the information I have on our girl I got from her FBI file. She grew up in a small town and I went as far back as I could and I couldn't find anything about J.J., her soccer team, her brothers or anything else about her or her family in the town's newspaper."

"That's strange. You would think a small town's newspaper would be full of stuff like school sports activities and students who do exceptionally well. You said before that J.J. was a straight A student, right?" Reid asked getting more confused with each new thing they found, not believing that the newspaper would have absolutely nothing about their friend.

"She told me she didn't have any brothers or sisters." Morgan, who had been strangely quiet throughout the entire conversation suddenly said.

"Then why would her file say she had two brothers?" Hotch wondered.

Morgan looked up at his friends with hurt evident in his eyes and his voice.

"Why would she lie to me?" he asked. Morgan was beginning to question how much he truly did know about the woman he loved, the one person he shared his secrets with and whom he thought had done the same.

Hotch could see the confusion begin to mix along with the hurt and fear on Morgan's face, but he knew he nor anyone else would ever be able to come up with any words that could even come close to comforting their friend.

"Morgan, I don't think she lied to you." Reid said in a confident voice which earned him a look from Morgan that clearly said 'How the hell would you know?!' He ignored the look and continued with his explanation. "The way she wrote the letter to you, the way she worded it, I…I think she really loved you and I don't think she would lie to you if she did."

"Then why would her FBI file say she had brothers that she didn't have?" Morgan asked

"Maybe that's not the only thing wrong in her file." Emily said, thinking aloud. "Maybe the reason you couldn't find anything about her in the newspaper is that she didn't grow up there. I don't know why her official file would have wrong information, but that seems to make the most sense to me."

"If we find out where she's really from then we will probably find all the answers we're looking for. Did you find an envelope with the letter to her?" Hotch asked.

"No, it was just this." Emily said, picking up the letter as she finished her sentence.

"Wait a second." Reid said as he began staring at the letter after Emily turned it so the front side was facing him.

"What is it, Reid?" Garcia asked as he took the paper and began to study the bottom right corner.

"It's a picture." He said a bit confused as to why they would have drawn a picture at the bottom of what was supposed to be a threatening letter.

"Of what?" everyone seemed to ask at the same time.

"Illinois." He replied with surprise and confusion in his voice.

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"What do you mean he's back? And how do you know?" J.J.'s father asked her becoming more panicked and worried each second about what might happen to himself or his daughter.

"He sent me a letter. I think he wants to kill me dad." She said slowly and quietly. J.J. looked up at her father as more tears threatened to fall.

"Then why didn't you tell the police?!" Her father rose from his spot on the couch next to her as his voice began to grow louder with very word he spoke. "You think you've got a murderer after you, Jenny and you come to me instead of the police? I just don't get it." He said shaking his head. His voice lowered as he said, "Do you want to end up like your mother?"

J.J. looked down at her shoes. She began to study them as if they were brand new and she still wasn't sure if she really liked them or not. When she spoke, her voice was quiet.

"I couldn't tell anyone dad."

"Why not?" Her father could come up with no good explanation as to why his daughter would not be able to tell the police about a threatening letter that she got and because of that, he was still practically yelling at her. He had thought years ago that he had been able to put the memory of his dead wife out of his mind and he only remembered what he had wanted to. Then his daughter came back and within five seconds of being there had brought up all the old memories and feelings that he though he had left behind.

J.J. got up, faced her father and looking him in the eye said, "I'm in the FBI, dad. I am the police and that letter said if I told anyone about it something bad would happen to someone I love."

He just looked at her shocked.


	5. Chapter 5

**Thanks to everyone who has reviewed! **

Her Secret

A CM fanfic

Chapter 5

"Do you think it might be some kind of a hint as to where he might be?" Derek Morgan asked as he and the rest of the team were crowded around the round table in the conference room staring at the small drawing of Illinois in the corner of the letter J.J. had received.

"Maybe that's where J.J.'s really from. He could have put it on the letter so she would know that it was really from him since no one else seemed to know much about her past. It's a way for him to prove who he is." Prentiss offered, hoping that they were getting closer to finding their friend.

"Garcia, can you check all the unsolved murders of mothers in small towns in Illinois? It's a long shot, but it's about all we have." Hotch said, hoping that Garcia could work her magic and find what they needed quickly.

Penelope Garcia then began to type furiously on the keyboard of her laptop and after a few minutes Reid began to wonder how anyone could type so fast and still be able to read what they were seeing on the screen. Finally the sound of her nails hitting the keys stopped and she informed the team of what she had found.

"Ok, there are about 25 in the last thirty years that fall in that category. I looked at all of them but this one", she said as she turned the laptop to face her friends, "looks like the most promising lead."

Everyone stared at the image on the screen. It was of a woman who looked almost exactly like J.J. but a bit older. She had the same hair color and the same deep blue eyes as their friend. Morgan looked up at Garcia, waiting for an explanation.

"Her name was Ann Mitchell, she died on March 14, 1985 and she had a six year old daughter at the time. The daughter's name was Jennifer." Garcia looked at the faces of her friends, letting the new information sink in. It was obvious to everyone that they had found what they were looking for, but they were shocked at the same time to find out that their friend and colleague whom they had known for several years had lost her mother when she was only six years old and had never told any of them about it.

"What happened?" Hotch asked the question everyone was thinking.

"She was at home with her daughter when someone broke in. Jennifer hid in a closet while her mother was strangled in the next room. He looked for her, but he didn't see her when he checked the closet. The husband told police that Ann thought she was being watched sometimes and showed them anonymous letters that she had gotten. They were from someone who, in the letters, claimed he was in love with her and when she didn't respond to them after several weeks they became threatening. Her husband, Sam, was trying to convince her to go to the police." Garcia said.

"Did they have any suspects?" Morgan asked, his tone of voice telling Garcia that if she gave him any names he would hunt them down and quite possibly beat the crap out of them, if not kill them for what they might have done to J.J.

"None." Garcia replied.

"What's the name of the town they lived in?" Hotch asked Garcia as he started to walk out of the room.

"Waverly, sir. Where are you going?"

"I'm going to make some calls and find J.J." Hotch replied as he quickly walked towards his office.

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"Okay, so let me get this straight, when you were in college you received a letter from your mother's killer and changed your name so he wouldn't be able to find you again. Then you go off, and join the FBI, only to abandon your life there and everyone in it when your get another letter instead of telling the police or someone you work with. And you never once during all those years thought to call and tell your own father that you were even alive until you thought some crazy stalker wanted to kill you!" J.J.'s father practically yelled.

They were sitting at the kitchen table and J.J. had just explained the events that had led up to her being back at home that very second.

"I'm sorry dad." J.J. said. "I know I should have called, but I was scared. I came home because I thought you could help me. I guess I was wrong. The only reason I didn't tell anyone because he said he would hurt one of my friends if I did."

J.J. then rose from the chair she had been sitting in and slowly began to walk towards the front door without looking back at her father. He just stood there for a second, watching her leave, but before she could get to the front door he realized that he lost his daughter once and he didn't want to lose her again.

"Jennifer wait. I'm sorry. You don't have to go. I understand why you didn't tell anyone and why you never called. I want to help you and I want to make this guy pay for what he did to us, but I just don't know how. How are we ever going to find him?"


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry it took so long to update. I've been busy. Thanks to egoofy34 for reviewing the last chapter!**

Her Secret

A CM fanfic

Chapter 6

Hotch was in his office talking on the phone to a detective from the small town in Illinois where J.J. was from.

"Thank you Detective. I'm sure Jennifer is the woman we're looking for. If you could send us the file you have on her mother's murder the rest of my team and I will be there shortly to talk to her and see what we can find about her mother's killer. Thank you." Hotch hung up the phone feeling as though they were finally getting somewhere in their search to find J.J. and the reasons for why she left.

A hopeful Hotch walked back to the conference room to find Morgan pacing back and forth around the room, Emily still staring at the letter their unsub sent J.J., Garcia staring at her laptop screen and Reid just sitting in the same chair he had been in when Hotch left. Almost running into him made Morgan the first one to notice that Hotch had reentered the room.

"Did you find anything? What did the local police say?" The rest of the team looked up at Hotch as Morgan spoke.

"I talked to a Detective Cooper from Waverly and he seemed to know someone that fit J.J.'s description." Everybody kept staring at him, waiting for more details. "He knew of Ann Mitchell's murder and said that it had haunted the town for years after it happened. Everyone assumed they would catch the killer quickly, but it never happened. He said Sam Mitchell still lives in the town, but Jennifer seemingly disappeared when she left for college, but he thought he saw her at her father's house a couple days ago." Hotch paused for a second and looked at his friends. "I think while J.J. was in college she changed her last name from Mitchell to Jareau to either try to leave her past behind her or to possibly run from her mother's killer if she knew he was still out there and following her. We won't know for sure though until we talk to J.J."

"But we are going to talk to her? We found her?" Garcia asked amazed at how quickly they found their friend once they knew where to look.

"Yeah, I think we found her." Was Hotch's reply.

They were all silent for several minutes. Each still trying to comprehend what was going on around them, what had happened to their friend and trying to decide what they could say to her that would make her come back and believe that they could help. Finally Reid spoke.

"When are we leaving?"

"Later today." Hotch said. "I'll tell you when I know more."

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J.J. and her father were sitting at the kitchen table trying to decide what to do about the killer and stalker that had been watching them for years.

"I still think we should go to the police." Sam, J.J.'s father, stated for the hundredth time in the last hour.

"Dad how many times do I have to tell you we're not going to the police?" J.J. said in an exasperated tone. "At least not yet." Her voice became softer and her face fell as she said the last four words. J.J. knew that the simplest and possibly the best thing she could do to help get herself out of the situation she was in and put away her mother's killer was to go to the police and tell them everything, but she couldn't, _she wouldn't_, let anything happen to Morgan because of her. She also knew that Derek Morgan could take down an unsub with one hand behind his back if he had to, but members of their team had been attacked before and she wasn't about to let it happen again.

"Do you still have the letters he sent and everything you gathered on mom's case?" J.J. asked.

"Yeah, I think they're still in the closet upstairs."

J.J. got up from her chair, walked through the kitchen and the living room toward the stairs. At the top of the stairs there was a door to J.J.'s right and a hallway on the left. She started down the hallway, but paused at the door of her old room. She turned the doorknob slowly and opened the door. J.J. looked into the room. It was exactly as she remembered it, the walls were still painted the same green they had been since she was in Jr. High, the same posters and pictures were still on the walls and none of her stuff had been moved. For a second she was caught up in remembering what it was like to be a teenager in high school. She remembered the many soccer games she played and what it felt like to bring her team to victory with the winning goal in the last few seconds of the game, but she was pulled from the memories that came flooding back to her as she heard her father coming up the steps. She quickly shut the door to her room and hurriedly walked towards the door at the end of the hall.

Sam turned the corner at the top of the stairs and started down the hall.

"Did you find it?" He asked.

"I got it." J.J. replied as she pulled a very large box down from the self at the top of the closet. She almost fell backwards under the weight of the box when she finally managed to free it from the other smaller boxes and objects surrounding it to pull it from the shelf.

J.J. then carried the box down the stairs and back into the kitchen to find her father clearing off what was on the table to make room for the box and its contents. Once the table was empty she placed the box on it and removed its lid. Her father watched as she began to remove the crime scene photos, witness statements and letters he had long ago memorized from the box and place them on the table.


	7. Chapter 7

Her Secret

A CM fanfic

Chapter 7

Hotch, Morgan, Reid, Prentiss, and Garcia walked down the stairs from the plane to find a large, older looking man standing by two black SUVs several yards away. He was holding a cup of coffee and looked as though he was on a steady diet of donuts. Once they were all on the ground Hotch started leading the group towards the detective.

Garcia whispered to Emily "And we all wonder why everyone thinks everybody involved in law enforcement would sit around eating donuts all day if they let us." Which caused them both to start laughing and Hotch to throw them a stern look before turning around and shaking hands with the man who introduced himself as Detective David Cooper.

"Thank you for helping us find our friend Detective." Hotch said as he shook Cooper's hand.

"Glad I could help, Agent…" He trailed off not being able to remember the name of the man he had spoken to on the phone.

"Hotchner." Hotch replied before he turned to the rest of the team, pointing to each one as he introduced them. "These are agents Morgan, Dr. Reid, Prentiss, and our technical analyst Penelope Garcia." He then turned back to the detective.

"Nice to meet you all." Cooper said as he shook hands with the rest of the team and turning back to Hotch said "So, do you guys want to come back to the station and go over the case file and evidence again or would you like me to take you to Sam's house?"

Hotch knew everyone wanted to see J.J., to ask her why she didn't come to them and he knew they all (himself included) just wanted to be sure she was ok.

"I think we'd all like to talk to Mr. Mitchell." Hotch said, and then quickly added "And see J.J., I mean Jennifer."

"Ok, Agent Hotchner, would you like to come with me?" Cooper said gesturing towards one of the SUVs behind him.

"Yeah." Hotch said and looking back at the rest of the team said "Morgan, you come with me. Reid, Prentiss, and Garcia follow us." They all nodded their understanding and separated, heading to their assigned vehicles.

With Detective Cooper in the driver's seat, Hotch in the passenger's seat and Morgan in back Hotch turned to the detective and asked "What can you tell us about Mr. Mitchell?" as the SUV pulled away from where it was parked with the rest of the team right behind them.

"Sam? He was one of the best officers this town ever had, helped to turn the police force into what it is today." He said.

"He was a police officer?" Morgan asked, surprised.

"Oh, yeah. We joined the force together. He was my partner years ago before they forced him into retirement after his wife was killed."

"Why was he forced into retirement?" Hotch asked.

"He became obsessed with Ann's case and couple years after it happened we ran out of leads. The chief decided to take everybody off it and put it on the shelf until we got new evidence. Sam just couldn't leave it alone. He was never able to fully concentrate on another case after it happened, so eventually they asked him to retire. And he did. When he left he took copies of the witness statements, crime scene photos, and just basically anything that they were willing to let him take that would fit in the box he had. He asks various people in the department every couple of weeks if anything new has come up. Nothing ever has...until now."

The SUV then rounded a corner which took them past several corn fields, an old red and white barn and finally a small pond surrounded by trees before stopping in front of a white, two story house. There was a flag pole in the center of the front yard, which was well maintained and a sidewalk that led from the edge of the driveway to the front door.

Hotch waited for Reid, Prentiss, and Garcia to pull up behind them before getting out of the car, followed by Morgan and Detective Cooper. The team of FBI agents and the detective just stood, looking at the house for a few moments before slowly making their way to the front door.


	8. Chapter 8

**This one's really short, but I wanted get something done. I'll try to update sooner than I have been, but school just started so it could take me a while.**

Her Secret

A CM fanfic

Chapter 8

"Dad, why do you still have these things?" J.J. asked her father.

They were sitting at the kitchen table going through the box of reports and witness statements Sam still had on his wife's murder.

"I always thought I'd be able to figure it all out one day." He replied sadly, feeling as though he had let his wife down by not bringing her killer to justice.

J.J. picked up a paper and after reading over it quickly she opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by a knock at the front door.

Sam pushed his chair away from the table, stood, and while walking towards the front of the house said "I'll get it."

J.J. went back to studying the papers in front of her. She heard the front door open and froze when she heard a man's voice.

"Hey, Sam word around town is your daughters back." The man said cheerfully. "Is Jenny here?"

J.J.'s mouth fell open and she dropped the report she had been holding as she remembered the last time she heard that voice.

"_Come on Ann. I know she's here somewhere." The man said calmly, but forcefully._

"_She's not here!" Ann screamed tearfully, hoping and praying her little girl would remain hidden until he left._

"_I know she's here! Where is Jenny?!" The man yelled back at her._

J.J. shook her head trying to push her memories to the back of her mind and forget the other things she had heard the voice say, and the actions she knew its owner had done. Finally, she focused back onto what her father was saying to the man she knew to be her mother's killer.

"She's in the kitchen Jack, but a lot has happened and we're really busy so maybe you should-" The man J.J. now knew to be Jack cut her father off in the middle of his sentence. His face changed, as did his attitude when he learned the object of his affections was indeed back at home as he had thought, but he couldn't see her.

"No Sam. I don't think you understand why I'm here." He said as he forced the front door open wide enough for him to walk through, nearly knocking the older man to the ground in surprise. He then pulled out a gun as he closed the front door.


	9. Chapter 9

**It's been WAY too long since I've updated this! I had some major writer's block and a lot of things have been going on the last few months, but things are starting to get a little better and I think I'm finally back on track with this story! I'll update again as soon as I can. **

**Thanks to everyone who has reviewed this story so far! :]**

Her Secret

A CM fanfic

Chapter 9

Hotch, Morgan, Prentiss, Reid, Garcia, and the detective made their way up the front steps to the door of the average looking house.

When they got to the door everyone paused, looking at each other, their eyes lingering on Morgan the longest. Waiting. Pausing if even for only a spilt second to be sure they were ready, prepared for what they would encounter on the other side of the door.

Morgan gave Hotch a short, quick nod and Hotch knocked on the door. They stood there for several seconds, waiting to hear the sound of footsteps on the other side of the door, waiting for the door to open. It didn't. Hotch knocked again and still, nothing.

"That's strange." Detective Cooper pointed out to the team. "Sam's always home at this time of day."

Hotch pressed his face to the glass of the window in the door looking for a sign that someone was inside, but he could see nothing.

Finally, the detective tried turning the door knob and much to his surprise it opened. He looked back at the others before leading them inside, everyone with their guns drawn.

Shouts of "Clear!" echoed throughout the house and everyone gathered in the middle of the first floor, waiting for Hotch to say what to do next.

"Sam's truck is outside. I don't know where they could be." Detective Cooper said as he shook his head in frustration.

"Everyone look around. Try to find any signs of forced entry and any clues that could tell us where might have gone." Hotch ordered.

CMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCM

The sun shown brightly through the tops of trees that surrounded the old country road J.J. and her father were being driven down in Jack's old truck. He had tied their wrists together and put duct tape over their mouths. J.J. was in the passenger seat while her father was crammed into the back seat among fast food wrappers, CD cases, various clothing items.

J.J. just looked at her captor as he drove. She knew he was her mother's killer, but she also knew that she'd seen him before. She'd seen him as a young child and though she nearly gave herself a headache trying to remember where she'd been when she'd last seen him she still couldn't place him. The light brown wavy hair J.J. knew she'd seen though it could have been longer then. His olive green eyes instilled a fear in her that she knew had always been there. Looking at his hollow cheeks, round nose, and thin lips it finally came to her.

Jack had been the quiet boy of about 20 that had worked in his father's grocery store when she was a child. J.J. remembered going there and watching him as he swept the floor or stocked the shelves, but she also began to remember the reason her mother had started going out of town to do her shopping. Jack had always tried to get close to her. He'd give Ann a sly smile and offer to carry bags out to the car. One Valentine's Day he sent her a card professing his love for her and asking her to run away with him, but she'd politely declined. Telling him he was a very nice young man, but she loved her husband very much and she was sure he'd find a girl his own age soon.

After that he'd begun to stalk her. He watched J.J.'s mother intently whenever he could. She quickly noticed and told his father. Soon after that they stopped shopping in town and did everything they could to stay away from him. Until the night he broke in and changed J.J.'s life forever.


	10. Chapter 10

**Here's the next chapter! Please let me know what you think! :)**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter!!!**

Her Secret

A CM fanfic

Chapter 10

Jack continued to drive and when J.J. finally took the time to look out the window she knew exactly where they were. They were out in the country, surrounded by corn and bean fields. The old truck occasionally took them past familiar looking old houses and J.J. recognized the area as being where her grandfather had grown up. She'd been here many times as a little girl with both her parents. Each visit had seemed like a new adventure as a young J.J. explored the old house and barn where relatives had lived. It had seemed like an almost magical place, but as they passed the church that had once been a one room school house and turned as J.J. saw the sign for 'Granny's Road' she knew exactly where they were going. Jennifer Jareau and her father both wondered what their captor would want with them at the small family cemetery where J.J.'s mother had been buried many years ago.

CMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCMCM

"There's nothing here Hotch, except the old case file on Ann Jareau's murder." Reid said, wondering how they were ever going to track down their friend now.

"There's got to be _something_." Morgan said determinedly as he went through everything left on the kitchen table.

The rest of the team including the detective were standing, watching Morgan, hoping that he'd find something even though each of them had already been through everything at least twice. Emily turned and opened her mouth to speak to Garcia, but stopped suddenly when something caught her eye. There was a paper on the floor underneath Morgan's chair that must have fallen off the table. She wondered if it'd just fallen off in Morgan's haste to find something or if it had been something that they all had missed entirely so she picked it up and began reading.

"Detective why weren't we told about this?" Emily asked waving the paper in her hands before handing to Detective Cooper.

Morgan stopped what he was doing and the conversations ceased as the team of profilers gathered to see what Emily had found.

"It was a dead end" the detective said, "The guy had an alibi. We couldn't even place him here on the night of the murder."

Hotch then took the paper which told about the one suspect they had at the time, Jack Andrews. He had been a young man in his twenty's at the time and Sam Jareau had said that he'd been stalking his wife shortly before her death.

"What was his story?" Reid asked.

"It says here that he claimed he had been at home all night. When the neighbors were questioned several of them remembered him coming home and never saw him leave after that." Hotch answered before Detective Cooper could even open his mouth.

"Just because a neighbor didn't see him leave doesn't mean he didn't leave." Garcia said.


	11. Chapter 11

**It has been FOREVER since I've updated this and I'm so sorry! I hit some major writer's block and I've been super busy. I didn't forget about it though! :) **

**A BIG thanks to foxyfeline!!! Thank you so much for helping me with ideas and giving me the motivation I needed to continue! Without you this wouldn't have been written!**

**I know this chapter is short, but I was just so excited I had to post something tonight! I hope you like it. It's been a while since I've written anything so I'm a little rusty and I hope I managed to keep things true to the story as they were before. Please review and telll me what you think! I hope to update again soon!**

Her Secret

A CM fanfic

Chapter 11

Jack Andrews rusty old pickup truck came to a slow stop just in front of the larger of the two gates to enter the small cemetery. J.J. looked around and found it exactly the same as the last time she'd been there years before. The entire cemetery was on a small hill surrounded by trees and fields beyond that. The same stones were still broken and lay in the grass near where they once stood. She recognized her mother's tombstone immediately. It was the first one you would come to and the only one surrounded by flowers with the other people there having been long forgotten by the few descendants that remained.

J.J.'s mind was in overdrive as she tried to figure out what Jack could want with her and her father there. She kept thinking of all the cases she'd worked on since coming to the FBI and wondered if she would end up like the victims. If he wanted to relive the night her mother was killed why didn't he just do it at the house? And why did he have to bring her father?

Looking back at her father, J.J. felt guilty for all of it. For him being there, for not visiting, for not helping him deal with her mother's death, and for not once thinking his life could also be in danger with this madman after her. All those years she left him alone in that house to obsess over the case. She could've helped. After working with profilers every day for years she'd picked up on the tools and techniques they used and she might have been able to figure it out had she ever volunteered to help her father or even to talk to him. Her mother's death had taken almost everything from him. She'd taken the rest when she'd run from her hometown as fast as she could right after high school graduation without looking back. She felt she had to get away, but now she realized how much her decisions had hurt others. Running never helped anything.

J.J. just wished she'd known that before she ran from the team. Ever since she'd been shoved into this damn truck she'd been mentally kicking herself for not telling Morgan. _Oh god, Morgan_ she thought. Why couldn't she have just told him? He loved her. He would have helped, but instead she didn't give him the chance and as Jack began pulling her and her father out of the truck and shoving them to the ground she wondered if she would ever get to see him again.

*~CM~*

"Just because a neighbor didn't see him leave doesn't mean he didn't leave." Garcia said.

"Right. Can you see if anyone who lived near him then still lives around here Garcia?" Hotch asked.

The blonde tech furiously began typing at her laptop. Everyone just stood, waiting, hoping it wouldn't take long for her to find something and sure enough after just a couple minutes the clicking of Garcia's nails against the keys of the laptop ceased and she looked up at them with a triumphant smile.

"Got one." she said. "The Daly family lived right next door to Andrews at the time of the murder. Their daughter Lisa was 9 at the time and she still lives in the same house."

"Let's go talk to her." was Morgan's quick response before heading to the door of the house and the SUVs in the driveway.


	12. Chapter 12

Her Secret

A CM Fanfic

Chapter 12

The entire team minus J.J. walked to the front door of the house next to the one Jack Andrews had grown up in. They rang the doorbell and when their possible witness Lisa Daly opened the door she looked startled to see so many serious faces staring back at her.

"Ms. Daly we're from the FBI and we'd like to ask you some questions about the murder of Ann Mitchell. May we come in?" Hotch asked while showing the woman his badge.

"Of course." Lisa said before opening the door and letting the BAU team inside. She led them to the living room where everyone sat down. "I was wondering if anyone was ever going to reopen that case." She began. "It's a shame what happened. I knew Ann's daughter Jennifer. She was just a couple grades behind me in school. Have you gotten any closer to catching the killer?"

"We're working on it." Rossi replied. "Do you remember anything about the night of March 14, 1985? We were hoping that you might have seen or heard something strange around the Andrews house that night."

"Actually I do remember something. At that time my bedroom window faced the Andrews house. I had a clear view of their backyard and that night I saw Jack sneak out. He seemed to be heading in the direction of Sam and Ann's house."

The profilers all looked at each other. This was what they had been hoping to find.

"I didn't say anything at first because I was so young and I should have been in bed when I saw him." Lisa continued. "But after I heard about what had happened I told my mother. I guess she never told the police. I don't think she wanted to get involved. She told me boys Jack's age sneak out all the time and it wasn't her place to tell on him. She thought he was a good kid."

"That's exactly what we needed to tie Jack to the case Ms. Daly. Thank you for your time." Hotch stood, preparing to leave. It was then that Morgan began to talk. He'd seemed to be deep in thought ever since Lisa began her story.

"Jack still lives next door, right?" To which Lisa just nodded. "Have you noticed him acting any differently lately? Has his routine changed?"

The new questions surprised the young woman. What has he done now? She thought. "No, I haven't noticed anything. His routine has been pretty much the same, though he doesn't really have one. He leaves at odd hours throughout the day and comes back at various times. I don't think I've seen him today yet."

"Thank you." Morgan said before standing and shaking hands with the woman. The rest of the team followed his lead and began walking back towards the door.

"If you remember anything please let us know." Hotch handed Lisa his card.

"I'm glad I could help." Lisa replied before showing them to the door.

~*CM*~

Jack Andrews pointed a gun at J.J. and her father, instructing them to walk into the cemetery and stop in front of Ann's tombstone. Father and daughter just looked at each other as their captor with his gun still trained on them began to talk.

"Look at this." He said gesturing towards the stone and all of the flowers and decorations around it. "Who do you think did all this? Who do you think turned this ugly grave into something beautiful worth Ann's name on it?! Not you." He yelled at Sam before turning to J.J. "And certainly not you!"

Sam defiantly stepped up in front of his daughter, shielding her from the gun. "That's my wife! All you did was send her to this cemetery! These flowers were left here by her friends, family, and myself." More anger was rising inside Sam than he'd ever felt before. Finally being face to face with his wife's killer brought back everything he felt for the past twenty years. He boldly looked Jack in the eye before saying "You never did anything to help her. All you did was kill her. You couldn't possibly have cared about her."

J.J. screamed in fear for her father as Jack hit him in the face with the butt of his gun. Sam fell to the ground unconscious.

~*CM*~

The BAU team along with Detective Cooper were all crowded into a small conference room.

"He's got to have her." Morgan stated. "But where could he have taken her?"

"Have you found anything yet Garcia?" Emily asked the blonde analyst who had been permanently staring at her laptop screen for almost an hour.

"I'm still working on it." Was her distracted reply.

"Lisa said he hasn't been home all day so he must have taken them somewhere." Reid chimed in. "It would have to be somewhere secluded where they wouldn't be able to get away or reach anyone for help."

"That could be anywhere around here." Detective Cooper shook his head. "There's a million country roads and they all lead to nowhere."

Hotch opened his mouth to speak, but before anything could come out Garcia practically sprang out of her chair. "I got something." She said, her voice bubbling with excitement. All eyes fell on the tech. "I've been looking forever for something on Andrews mother and I finally found it. She's been living in a nursing home not far from here. Maybe she knows something."

"Let's find out." Hotch said.


	13. Chapter 13

**Sorry this is so short! It seemed a lot longer when I was writing it! lol**

**Thanks to everyone who's reviewed so far!**

Her Secret

A CM Fanfic

Chapter 13

The team arrived at the nursing home where Josephine Andrews had been living for the last few years. They were led by a nurse to Josephine's room where they found the old woman watching Wheel of Fortune re-runs. "Are you stupid?! Stop buying vowels and solve the puzzle already!" She yelled at the television.

The nurse quickly walked across the room and pressed the off button on the TV. "I was watching that!" Josephine complained.

"You have some visitors Mrs. Andrews." The nurse replied before leaving the room.

"Who are you?" The old woman asked Hotch skeptically.

"I'm Agent Hotchner from the FBI." He showed her is badge. "We are investigating the murder of Ann Mitchell."

"We'd like to ask you a few questions if that's alright." Reid said.

"Ask away." Mrs. Andrews replied. "I have nothing to hide."

"Where was your son on the night of March 14, 1985?" Morgan asked.

"I can't even remember what my roommate's name is half the time and you expect me to be able to tell you where Jack was on some night over twenty years ago?"

"You must remember something from that time ma'am. Ann's murder was big news in the small town of Waverly." Rossi coaxed the old woman, hoping this lead wouldn't turn out to be a dead end.

Josephine crossed her arms and stated simply. "I'm sure my Jack was at home. I don't know what you people are trying to find out about him or what you think he's done, but he was always a good boy. You're going after the wrong person."

"Mrs. Andrews, with all due respect, we have reason to believe that your son murdered Ann Mitchell and that he is most likely holding an FBI agent, one of our friends, hostage right now. We won't stop looking for him until we find him." Morgan was getting agitated. All he wanted was to find J.J., but these people were making it increasingly difficult to do so. Josephine just continued to look at him. She refused to speak a word. Morgan continued. "You remember Ann's daughter Jennifer don't you? She would have been about six when her mother was murdered right in front of her. You may have been protecting you son for twenty years when it comes you Ann's murder, but do you really want to feel responsible for Jennifer's murder too?"

The old woman waved her arms in defeat. "Alright!" She said as tears threatened to fall. "Jack wasn't home that night. I never knew for sure if he killed her or not, but I knew it was possible. He was a good kid. He really was. He was just a little different. He needed help." She looked up at the team, pleading with them to believe her. "He always talked about wanted to see Jennifer again. He used to go to Ann's grave on holidays and birthdays hoping to see her, but he never did. I never thought he wanted to hurt her. I thought he just wanted to catch up with an old friend. I never would have dreamed he'd kidnap her." Mrs. Andrews finished as tears silently fell.

"Thank you Mrs. Andrews." Rossi said gently. "None of this was ever your fault. Don't forget that. If you remember anything else give us a call." He placed his card on a table next to her before following the team out.

"We know we've got the right guy now, but we still don't know where he might have taken J.J. and her father." Emily stated.

Hotch thought for a moment before replying. "Let's check out that cemetery."


	14. Chapter 14

**Once again...they always seem longer before I upload them. lol **

**Anyway, you can thank my friend Cait (ReidsLuvr93) for this one! We were talking about fanfiction earlier and she got me thinking about this chapter. I couldn't go to sleep before it was done.**

**Thanks to those of you who reviewed! I love hearing what you guys think.**

Her Secret

A CM Fanfic

Chapter 14

Detective Cooper drove the SUV carrying Rossi, Emily, and Reid to the old cemetery while Hotch, Morgan, and Garcia followed in another one. The country roads were bumpy and every place looked the same to Morgan as they went by. All he could see where fields with the occasional clump of trees or run down house. They were getting close when over the hum of the engine and awkward silence that had settled over the team they heard a scream. Hotch and Detective Cooper pressed on the gas pedal and spun around the last to curves before speeding up the lane that led to the cemetery and bringing their vehicles to a screeching halt just before they hit Jack Andrew's truck.

Morgan was the first to jump out, gun raised. He could see J.J. leaning over a man he assumed to be her father. Another man stood holding a gun, watching her with a smug look on his face. "FBI!" Morgan shouted. "Put the gun down!"

J.J.'s head sprang up at the sound of his voice. She was overjoyed to see him there, but fear quickly took over as Jack grabbed her by the arm and pulled her to a standing position. He put her in front of him and pointed the gun to her head before telling Morgan "I'm not letting her get away this time."

The rest of the team had come up behind Morgan. "Put it down Andrews." Hotch yelled at the younger man.

Jack just looked at J.J. who now had fresh tears rolling down her face. With his free hand he stroked her hair while saying "I don't think so." Two shots rang out. J.J. and Andrews both fell to the ground.

The team holstered their weapons and Detective Cooper was on his radio calling for an ambulance within seconds. They ran to J.J.'s side and Hotch checked for a pulse on Jack Andrews body. "He's dead." He stated simply.

"Good." was Morgan's mumbled reply as he tried to apply pressure to the wound in J.J.'s shoulder.

Rossi and Reid checked on Sam Mitchell and found he was still unconscious.

To the BAU agents it seemed like forever for the ambulances to arrived, though it was only a few short minutes. They checked on J.J. first who seemed to be awake, but hadn't said anything. They loaded her onto a gurney and wheeled her into the back of the ambulance. Morgan climbed in with her when he found she wouldn't let go of his hand. "Derek." She'd managed to choke out when he'd tried to release her. He wiped the tears from her eyes and said gently "I'm not going anywhere."

The two ambulances sped off to the nearest hospital with the SUVs carrying the team close behind.


	15. Chapter 15

**This is the last chapter. I hope you guys like it! **

**Thanks to everyone who has reviewed this story! **

Her Secret

A CM Fanfic

Chapter 15

The long wait in the hospital felt like an eternity to the BAU agents. Morgan couldn't stop pacing. Hotch refused to sit down and Emily's eyes were glued to the door, waiting for a doctor to come through them. Garcia had taken the job of going to the cafeteria to get everyone coffee, though she went about every five minutes, it gave her something to do. Rossi sat with his head against wall counting ceiling tiles and listening to Reid ramble on about the statistics of gun shot wounds.

Finally a young doctor who didn't look much older than Reid came through the door. "I'm Drew Hughes, Jennifer Jareau's doctor." He said. The team rushed over to him, eager to find out J.J.'s condition.

With six pairs of expectant eyes staring at him Dr. Hughes continued "The bullet didn't hit any major arteries and it missed the bone. She's very lucky." Everyone let out a collective sigh of relief. "We're going to keep her here over night for observation though. As long as nothing happens she should be able to go home tomorrow."

"Do you know anything about her father?" Hotch asked.

"Oh yes, he's Doctor Grant's patient. I believe he's doing fine and they're just waiting for him to wake up. I'll have him come find you when they know more."

"Can we see Jennifer?" Morgan asked the question everyone was thinking.

"If you follow me I'll take you to her room." The doctor replied. On the way there he asked "Which one of you is Derek?"

The team looked to Morgan and he said "I am."

"She's been asking for you." Dr. Hughes said before suddenly stopping in front of a door. "This is her room. I'll stop by periodically to check on her. She's been through quite a bit throughout the last few days and she needs her rest. Don't keep her up too long." Then the doctor was gone, heading down the hallway to see to his other patients.

"You go first." Hotch said to Morgan. "She's been asking for you. We'll wait out here."

The younger man looked at his colleagues. He was scared. His relationship with the woman lying in a hospital bed on the other side of that door wasn't a secret anymore. The secrets about her past that she'd fought so hard to keep from all of them were now common knowledge and he had no idea how she'd feel about any of it. Not only their relationship, but the relationships between the whole team would change and he wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad one.

Morgan hesitated after turning the doorknob, but after making up his mind that he'd be ready for whatever he might find on the other side of the door he walked in. He'd never seen J.J. so vulnerable. The sunlight from the window shown brightly on her right shoulder. He could see the bandages peeking out from under the blankets. She looked so pale, so unlike the J.J. he had once thought he knew. She opened her eyes at the sound of his footsteps. He could tell she'd been crying and more silent tears began to fall as she watched him.

"Hey." He said softly. "It's okay." Morgan carefully sat down on the bed next to her and gently wiped the tears from her eyes.

J.J. grabbed his hand and held it before finally saying. "I'm sorry. I-"

He cut her off with a kiss to her forehead. "It's alright. We know about everything. You don't have to be sorry."

She shook her head. "But I lied to you. I lied to all of you. You've got to be at least a little bit mad at me for that."

"I'm not Jayje. I promise. I love you. You did what you thought you had to at the time. I can't blame you for that."

"I don't deserve you." J.J. said as fresh tears began to fall. "I should have told you, but instead I ran. I always run."

"You were scared. We all get scared sometimes and just because you always _used _to run doesn't mean you always _will."_

"I don't want to run from you anymore, Derek. I love you." She pulled him down into a gentle, but passionate kiss.

Once she let him go Morgan sat up and said "The team's waiting out in the hall. You want to see them?"

J.J. smiled and nodded her response. As Morgan got up to let them in the both knew that everything would be okay in time.


End file.
